Commode tank jacket



April 5, 1955 H. c. KAISER 2,705,519

con/[MODE TANK JACKET Filed Sept. l, 1949 IN V EN TOR.

United States Patent O COMMODE TANK JACKET Helen C. Kaiser, Cleveland, Ohio Application September 1, 1949, Serial No. 113,633

1 Claim. (Cl. 150-52) This invention relates to a covering for a commode and more particularly to a heat insulating jacket for the ush tank of a commode to prevent condensation of moisture thereon.

The problem of preventing water from condensing on commodes and particularly on commode ush tanks is acute in the hot humid days of summer although it is present the year around especially if a shower or bath is present in the same room. The problem arises because the exterior surfaces of the commode and particularly of the flush tank are cooled appreciably below room temperature by the cold water within the commode. When the relatively warm air of the room which is heavily laden with water vapor strikes these cold surfaces, water condenses in large amounts and runs down the sides to collect in pools of condensate which are annoying and unsightly.

Past efforts to meet this problem have produced means which are merely remedial in nature in that they have not prevented condensation but have only attempted to collect it. One form of device resulting from these prior attempts takes the form of a shallow pan positioned immediately below the Hush tank to collect Water as it drips from the tanks and drain it into the toilet towl. The pan is dilcult to install and to keep clean, and when the drain thereof becomes clogged, as it frequently does, it is totally ineffective. Another form consists of an absorbent pad positioned beneath the ush tank to absorb and collect the water or condensate. The pad is dicult to clean, and once it becomes saturated it also becomes useless. These devices therefore are unsatisfactory because they do not prevent condensation from occurring, but deal with it or attempt to deal with it only after it occurs.

My invention, in contrast, is intended to prevent condensation from occurring in any appreciable degree. To this end I provide a covering or jacket made of cloth or similar heat insulating material to cover the commode and particularly the ush tank thereof. The jacket is adapted to it snugly against the exterior surfaces of the tank and exclude air from contact with the cold exterior surfaces, thus efectively preventing condensation. The jacket is made of material woven in a manner to enable it to conform rather closely to the commode surfaces so that it will be most effective in preventing air from contacting the commode and so that it will be able to fit commodes of various sizes and shapes.

A general object of my invention therefore is to provide means to prevent water from condensing on the surfaces of the commode. Another object is to provide an insulating jacket for the ush tank of a commode which will protect the surfaces from the atmosphere to prevent water from condensing thereon. Another object is to provide an insulating jacket of cloth so woven that a slight amount of elasticity will be obtained permitting it to stretch and shrink as needed to permit it to lie closely adjacent the surfaces of a commode. Another object is to provide a jacket made of absorbent fabric which is adapted to -absorb such moisture as might condense on the commode. Another object is to provide a cover for a commode flush tank which will fit various sizes and shapes of tanks. Other objects are to provide a jacket which is easy and economical to manufacture, which can be readily fitted on and removed from the commode, which is made of readily washable material and which is attractive in appearance.

2,705,519 Patented Apr. 5, 1955 rice Further objects and advantages will appear from the following description of my invention, reference being made to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure l is a perspective view of a commode, the flush tank of which is to be covered with an insulating jacket in accordance with my invention;

Figure 2 is a perspective view of an insulating jacket which is adapted to cover the flush tank of Figure 1,

Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary View in perspective showing a detail of the bottom of the jacket of Figure 2 showing the manner of providing holes in the jacket to accommodate pipes leading from the commode flush tank;

Figure 4 is a perspective view similar to Figure 2 showing a modified form of flush tank jacket, and

Figure 5 is a perspective view similar to Figure 2, showing still another modified form of jacket.

Briefly my invention contemplates covering the cool surfaces of the ush tank of a commode with a jacket or cover made from cloth of loose and absorbent weave, such as toweling material` When such material is stretched over the commode, the surfaces are shielded from contact with air currents. Although such material is porous permitting small amounts of air to penetrate the pores and to reach the commode surfaces, the air tend to remain trapped in the cloth and then itself acts to insulate the surfaces. This air may give up some water of condensation but it is in small amounts and the toweling can easily absorb it. The surfaces are thus protected from circulating air currents in which new volumes of air continuously give up water of condensation. Such material when stretched over the commode, thus eectively shields the surfaces from air so that by far the greater amount of condensation is eliminated at the source.

My invention is illustrated, in its preferred form, for use with a more-or-less conventional commode comprising a llush tank 11 and a sanitary bowl 12. As illustrated in Figure 1, the flush tank 11 takes the form of the usual rectangular box comprising a front wall 13, end walls 14, and a bottom 15. The rear wall 16 of the tank in this particular installation lies ush against the wall of the room and hence is not exposed to the atmosphere. A removable lid 17 covers the top of the tank and permits access to the interior. A water supply pipe 18 enters the bottom of the tank adjacent one end and a ush pipe 19 enters the bottom of the tank at the central portion thereof. A ush handle H is located in the front wall 13 in a convenient location. The bowl 12 is also of conventional design with a convex forward bulging portion and with the rounded bulging side walls.

The major amount of condensation occurs on the flush tank because the walls are thin and of single thickness and because the tank isconstantly filled with cold water. The outside walls of the tank are thus cooled by the water contained therein to a temperature appreciably below room temperature and under these conditions condensation tends to occur in large amounts.

To prevent this condensation, I have provided an insulating jacket indicated generally at 20 in Figure 2 which for convenience is shown as it would appear in position on the tank 11 of Figure 1, although the tank itself is not shown. The jacket comprises a front central portion 22 and end portions 23 which are adapted to cover the front wall 13 and the end walls 14 of the tank. A bottom portion 24 is connected to the lower edges of the central portion 22 and the ends 23. Holes 26 and 27, see Figure 3, are provided in the bottom to accommodate the pipes 18 and 19 respectively. As will be pointed out later, the lines of demarcation between the central portion 22, the end portions 23, and the bottom 24 are not fixed but will vary somewhat depending on the tank which is to be covered.

The jacket 20 ts onto the tank in a manner which holds it securely to the tank and which also tends to stretch the jacket taut so that it will lie snugly against the tank surfaces. To this end a pair of elastic straps 28 and 29 are secured to the top edges of the jacket end portions 23, as shown in Figure 2. These straps are preferably of equal length and are slightly shorter than the width of the tank to be covered so that when the jacket is fitted on the tank the straps will draw the end portions 23 of the jacket inwardly toward each other and upwardly on the tank to enable the jacket to fit the tank with a snug fit.

When the jacket is in position on the tank the elastic straps 28 and 29 lie underneath the cover 17 of the tank and, since they are under tension, tend to draw the jacket ends 23 upward and inwardly with the ends lying adjacent the tank end walls 14, the jacket central portion 22 lying adjacent the tank front wall 13 and the jacket bottom 24 lying underneath the tank bottom 15. Thus the bottom and end portions of the jacket are drawn taut against the walls which they cover and at the same time the front portion 22 also is drawn tight. To further secure the jacket to the tank the upper front edge of the central portion 22 is supported by a pluraliity of tapes 30 which are secured to the elastic strap 28 at spaced points to keep the upper edge from sagging. If desired, the tapes 30 may also be elastic. The jacket in this position remains securely on the tank, fitting snugly against the tank surfaces so that there is no possibility of air circulating between the tank and the jacket.

With the jacket in position, the flush handle extends through an opening 31 provided for that purpose and the pipes 18 and 19 extend through the openings 26 and 27 in the bottom of the jacket. The openings 26 and 27 are preferably provided by the construction shown in Figure 3 in which the holes 26 and 27 are defined by three overlapping and removably secured flaps. Thus a pair of flaps 32 and 33 extends laterally along the rear edge of the bottom portion of the jacket toward each other and are fastened together at their ends by any suitable means such as the snap fasteners indicated at 34. A third flap 35 extends at right angles tothe flaps 32 and 33 and is releasably secured to the flaps as by the snap fasteners indicated at 36. The flap 35 is cut away at its ends to define the holes 26 and 27 in the manner shown.

With this construction the bottom 24 of the jacket is easily fitted around the bottom of the tank and around the pipes 18 and 19. Thus with the flaps unfastened the jacket is fitted onto the tank with the bottom 24 extending under the tank. The flaps 32 and 33 are then brought together rearwardly of the pipes and fastened together; the flap 35 is then brought between the pipes and underneath the flaps 32 and 33 and fastened thereto.

This design of jacket for the flush tank together with the limited elasticity of the material enables it to be used with tanks of various sizes and shapes for, as mentoned above, there are no fixed lines of demarcation between the ends and bottom and center portion of the jacket. For example, when the jacket is fitted to a tank of similar shape but of slightly larger size the bottom piece 24 would tend to be larger at the expense of the central portion 22 and the ends 23 and at the same time the top edge of the jacket would be pulled to a slightly lower position below the top of the tank, the elastic bands stretching to accommodate these changes. In this manner if the variations are not too great, the jackets can be fitted to tanks of various sizes and shapes without appreciable diiculty and without loss in effectiveness.

A modified form of jacket, indicated gener-ally at 40 in Figure 4, is especially adapted for use with flush tanks which are spaced from the wall of the bathroom so that the rear Walls of the tanks are also exposed to the atmoshere.

p The jacket 40 is essentially similar in construction and in function to the jacket 20, just described, being made of toweling or similar material and being adapted to cover the exposed areas of the flush tank to prevent condensation from occurring thereon. The main difference arises in the provision of a jacket wall portion to cover the rear wall 16 of the flush tank.

Thus the jacket 40 comprises wall portion 41, end walls 42, rear wall 43 and a bottom 44 adapted to lie against and to cover the corresponding walls of the tank. Preferably the bottom 44 has the ap construction, shown in Figure 3, to enable it to fit around the pipes leading to the tank. In order to be able to fit the jacket onto the tank, the front portion 41 is separated into the halves 41a and 41b which are fastened together by the slide fastener 45, and the bottom portion has a slit 46 extending from the slide fastener to the opening 27 as shown in Figure 4.

The slit 46 permits the jacket to be opened up and to be Wrapped around the tank to be fitted into place. Thereafter, when the slide fastener 45 is closed, the natural resiliency of the toweling tends to hold the jacket in place.

The jacket may, if desired, be provided with elastic portions having appreciably greater elasticity than that of the toweling itself. Such portions as shown in Figure 4, take the form of a vertical strip 48 extending down the rear wall and integral with a horizontal strip 49 extending from front to back in the bottom wall. The strips 48 and 49 are preferably of woven or knitted cloth having rubber added to impart the desired resiliency. Such elastic materials are well-known being used for clothing, sport accessories and the like where resiliency and stretch as well as absorbent qualities `are-desired. The elastic strips enable the jacket to fit a variety of tank sizes and shapes and to cling snugly againstthe `walls of such tanks presenting an attractive appearance without sagging or wrinkling, and effectively preventing condensation thereon.

A further modification of my invention indicated generally at 50 in Figure 5, is also adapted for use with a commode tank which is spaced from the wall of the room. In this particular form, the rear wall portion of the jacket 50 is provided with a vertically extending strip 51 of elastic material essentially the same as the strip 48 of Figure 4, but in addition substantially the entire bottom portion 52 is of similar elastic material. In all other respects and details of construction the jacket is similar to that of Figure 2. By this means, the jacket 50 is enabled to fit flush tanksv of radically differing sizes and shapes, the jacket being capable of stretching and shrinking to conform closely to the tank surfaces. Thus if the tank is large the strip 51 will stretch to permit lateral lengthening of the jacket and the bottom will correspondingly stretch in one or both dimensions to permit the jacket to fit the tank. Thus a large range of accommodation as to tank size is obtained without loss of insulating and absorbent properties.

It will beapparentthat I have provided an insulating cover or jacket for commodes which effectively solves the problem of condensation.` Such a cover can be made in a variety of colors and` patterns which can be quite attractive. From an aesthetic point of view, my invention adds much to the commode and the room in which it is located. Further modifications vand changes, no doubt, will occur to those skilledinl the artwithout departing from the spirit and scope of my invention, and it is to be understood that the foregoing description has been glven only by way of example, and that the essential characteristics of the invention are summarized in the claim.

I claim:

A jacket for covering the ush tank of ay commode comprising a blank of absorbent, cloth adapted to lie immediately adjacent the sides and front of the tank, elastic means extending across the top of the tank connected to the sides and drawing the sides together, tie means extending from one of said elastic means and connected to the top edge of the front panel to support the top edge against sagging, a bottom having a pair of flaps extending toward each other and releasably secured together, a third flap extending across 'and releasably secured to said pair of flaps and having notches whereby to define openings with said pair of aps to accommodate the pipes leading to said tank.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Re. 10,450 Kraemer Feb. 26, 1884 1,384,908 Lockwood July 19, 1921 1,581,953 Jackson Apr. 20, 1926 1,610,326 Schleich et al Dec. 14, 1926 1,669,616 Johnson Aug. 15, 1928 2,035,384 Hinchlij Mar. 24, 1936 2,527,418 Harrington Oct. 24, 1950 

